Powerball Goes on Sale in UK With £300m Jackpot

Powerball, the US game behind the record 2.04 billion dollar jackpot won in 2022, went on sale in the UK for the first time on Tuesday.

National Lottery players pay £4 per line to compete alongside American players for shared jackpots that can run into the billions (paid out over 30 years). The opening UK draw takes place at around 4 am on Thursday, with the prize currently set at a staggering £300 million.

Operator Allwyn confirmed the first shop ticket sold just after 5 am on Tuesday at Sewell On The Go in Pocklington, York, and the first app ticket went to a Brighton player at 5.54 am.

Players have until 11.55 pm on Wednesday to enter the first draw, after which Powerball runs three times a week from a studio in Florida. UK jackpots are uncapped and start at £12 million.

A UK-only tier pays a fixed £8 for matching two main numbers, and matching five main numbers pays a fixed £1 million, with all other tiers varying by the balls drawn and the number of winners, per the National Lottery's Powerball rules.

Jackpot Odds Sit at Around One in 292 Million

Allwyn puts the overall odds of winning any Powerball prize at one in 14, but the jackpot itself carries odds of roughly one in 292 million. At £4 a line, Powerball costs double a standard £2 Lotto entry. The launch follows June's Lotto overhaul, which gave players two chances to win per ticket and is expected to lift the number of Lotto millionaires from about 140 a year to around 345.

What This Means for UK Lottery Players

Powerball is the priciest draw game the National Lottery has ever offered, and the eye-watering jackpot comes with its longest odds. Prizes are paid over 30 years rather than as a lump sum, so a headline £300 million is not £300 million in the bank on day one.

The first UK draw lands at around 4am Thursday, with the ticket deadline at 11.55pm Wednesday. Treat it as entertainment on a fixed budget, not a plan.